Claudia Cardinale, whose performances graced such Italian cinematic masterpieces as Federico Fellini’s 8 1/2, Luchino Visconti’s The Leopard and Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West , has died. She was 87.

Cardinale died Tuesday in Nemours, near Paris, her agent, Laurent Savry, told AFP.

Cardinale erupted onto the international scene in the early ’60s and became, along with Sophia Loren and Anna Magnani, one of the most prominent Italian stars of her epoch.

With more than 130 feature credits and a handful of theatrical roles in her name, she worked steadily from her debut in her early 20s until her death. She won three David di Donatello Awards — Italy’s equivalent of the Oscar — for best actress and received an honorary Golden Lion from the Venice Film Festival in 199

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